The present invention relates to mounting accessories on a work vehicle. In particular, the present invention relates to an actuator for joining hydraulic line couplers.
Hydraulic couplers include a female part into which a male part can be inserted and are known in the prior art. Pressure in one or both of the hydraulic hoses being coupled together when mounting an attachment device causes loads on valves that must be moved and opened or unseated for coupling. The force required to couple the parts can require more force than a human can directly apply until an appropriate amount of pressure is relieved. In the prior art, hydraulic pressure in both lines generally has to be bled or released in some manner to allow manual connection of the male and female coupler parts. Hydraulic pressure buildup is a particular problem when the attachment device being controlled is an implement under a load that creates pressure in a hydraulic line. The manual attachment of the coupler under these circumstances is difficult, due to the circuit pressure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,397, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety, shows a quick attachment device having a power actuator that is used for quickly operating latches for attaching and detaching various accessories on the attachment plate at the front of the loader. The quick attachment device has been used extensively by Melroe Company, a business unit of Clark Equipment Company and sold under the mark Bobtatch™.
The present invention is made to utilize the actuator operation of quick attachment systems, similar to the above-identified patented system, to couple hydraulic couplers for the auxiliary implement being attached, even if hydraulic pressure is trapped in one of the lines.